                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2026 February 28

                        Lunar Occultation of Mercury
                 Image Credit & Copyright: Fabrizio Melandri

   Explanation: Fans of the western sky after sunset have lately enjoyed
   this month's remarkable array of bright planets. Witnessed from some
   locations, on February 18 planet Mercury even appeared to slide behind
   the Moon, an event known as a lunar occultation. These two snapshots,
   taken in early evening skies show before and after telescopic views of
   the rare disappearance of innermost planet behind young Moon. The top
   panel finds bright Mercury just visible at the northern (right) edge of
   the earthshine-illuminated lunar disk. In the bottom panel the bright
   planet has emerged in darker skies beyond the Moon's sunlit crescent.
   As seen south of Sallisaw, Oklahoma, planet Earth, this lunar
   occultation of Mercury lasted only about 3 minutes (video). But you can
   still check out a parade of planets tonight.

                        March 3: Total Lunar Eclipse
                        Tomorrow's picture: moon dark
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Amber Straughn Specific rights apply.
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